Maha among 6 states that didn't use Nirbhaya fund; UP, Delhi spent less than 5 per cent

The Nirbhaya fund, set up by the Centre in 2013 to be used towards ensuring women's safety, has seen a dismal nine per cent utilisation with states such as Maharashtra and Meghalaya not spending a single rupee from it, according to government data.

In total, just Rs 147 crore out Rs 1,649 crore sanctioned by the Centre has been spent by the state and UTs governments, the Parliament was recently informed by Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani.

Uttar Pradesh and Telangana, the two states which were in the news recently for horrific incidents of rape and murder, were among the highest recipients of the Nirbhaya fund alongside Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi.

While Karnataka used 7 per cent of the fund allocated to it by the Centre (the fund allocated to Karnataka was Rs 191 crore and utilisation Rs 13.62 crore), Tamil Nadu used 3 per cent of the amount allocated to it under the Nirbhaya fund (the fund allocated was Rs 190.68 crore and utilisation Rs 6 ...